At a character education assembly at Quest Academy on Monday, Oct. 1, students, faculty and a group of former teachers, who taught during the school's early days, honored the school's founder, Helene Bartz.

Shortly after delivering an inspirational graduation speech at Quest Academy on June 2, Helene Bartz died June 21.

Her daughter, Susan Paschal Bartz, told students at the recent assembly that her mother's dream and vision of opening a school for gifted children was questioned by many, but it was her mother's tenacity that ensured that "an idea became something real."

Since its founding in 1982, Quest Academy has grown from an enrollment of 11 students to 290 students, enrolling students from preschool through grade eight.

Susan Paschal Bartz also presented the school with an endowment gift named in her mother's honor to fund professional development opportunities to Quest Academy faculty members. State Rep. Tom Morrison, 54th District, also read a proclamation issued by the state of Illinois honoring Helene Bartz's contributions to the field of gifted education.